Snow in the Desert
by Kris Harold
Summary: When Soichi Raito falls for Gaara, the Kazekage of Sunagakure, what'll happen when Akatsuki comes after them, and what will the two be able to teach each other along the way?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Out of my way!" a young female voice called.

Temari looked into the crowded street of the Sand Village in the direction she had heard the voice. Her accompanying brother, Kankurou, looked, as well.

"Excuse me! Please, _move_!" A girl with long, snow-white hair emerged from the crowd, cautiously looking over her shoulder for pursuers. She ran without looking in front of her, only behind.

Kankurou turned to face her, as did his sister, to see what the trouble was. As the girl turned to watch where she was running, she ran smack into Kankurou, feeling as if she'd just hit a brick wall as the impact caused her to fall to the ground.

"Ow…" she mumbled as she rubbed her head sorely. The girl gasped with a glance behind her, "Oh, no."

The siblings looked up to see three men, obviously from another village, emerge from the crowd. Kankurou looked down to find the girl frantically scurrying to crawl and hide behind him. Temari noticed it, too, and stepped in front, hands on her hips.

"What seems to be the problem here, boys?" She made it obvious that she wasn't about to accept any bull answers.

The men stopped in front of her and one said, "There'll _be_ no problem as long as you hand over the girl." Another one of the men tapped on the first's shoulder and pointed in Kankurou's direction. When the first looked where the other was pointing, he muttered, "Damn, she's gone," and they were off.

Kankurou blinked, confused, and turned around to see that there was a boulder where the girl had been. Neither of them recalled hearing the familiar 'poof' noise heard in transformations or substitutions so they began to look at the large rock intently.

Temari jumped back in surprise when she saw a pair of eyes on the rock look at her and blink. Kankurou looked to see what had startled his sister and saw the eyes. They looked at him and he heard the girl's voice ask, "Are they gone?"

Kankurou raised an eyebrow; he'd never seen a jutsu like this. "Uh… Yes?" He was expecting a 'poof' for her to transform back, but there was none. The girl's bodily features quickly became more defined as she uncurled on herself and stood up. Soon, she appeared completely normal while she looked around for signs of the men.

Temari was first to speak. "What's your name? I'm Temari and this is Kankurou."

The girl blinked, almost caught off guard with the question. "Soichi. Soichi Raito of the Snow."

"The Snow? That's pretty far from here," the puppet-loving brother pointed out.

Temari disregarded it and asked, "Why were those men after you? And what was that jutsu?"

Soichi looked at the ground, taking a few locks of her hair and stroking it nervously. "Because, I… I'm…" Her eyes looked away and she fell silent. It became apparent to them that she wasn't going to answer.

Kankurou leaned over and muttered into his sister's ear, "I think we should take her to Gaara. He'll know what to do."

Temari nodded and answered quietly, "Right." Looking at the nervous girl, she smiled. "Let's go to the Kazekage. He'll be able to help you."

Soichi nodded as the two Sand siblings led her to the Kazekage's office, having her wait out in the hall with Temari while Kankurou went in to explain the situation.

"And she displayed some sort of strange transformation jutsu without any hand signs. What do you make of it?" Kankurou stood patiently in front of his brother's desk.

Gaara set aside some paperwork. "How old is the girl?"

"She appears to be no more than two years younger than you. So, approximately thirteen or fourteen years old, I'd say."

The redheaded Kazekage thought a moment before looking up at his brother. "Send her in."

Kankurou nodded and retreated to the door and stepped out, nodding to Soichi and showed her inside. However, Temari and he stayed in the hall, leaving the two in there alone.

Soichi took a few steps toward the desk and jumped back when she recognized Gaara's face. Even in the Land of Snow, she knew who he was.

Gaara merely sighed. '_Great… _Another_ person who's afraid of me._' "You're afraid of Shukaku, too, I suppose?"

She regained her composure with a deep breath. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted that way. I just didn't expect to run in to…" she began to nervously stroke her white locks again.

"Yes? Run into what?" he asked curiously.

"Run in to…" Soichi's grey, icy-blue eyes gazed up into his. "Another Jinchuuriki."

Gaara didn't quite understand. "What do you mean?"

She looked down and closed her eyes with a sigh, lifting her shirt to uncover her stomach and reveal the seal that kept the demon locked in her body. After a moment, she slowly lowered her shirt and looked to her right with downcast eyes.

It made sense to him now. Why those men were after her, the hand sign-less transformation, and even her reluctance to explain those things to Temari and Kankurou.

There was a deafening silence before Gaara managed to ask, "Care to tell me which demon it is?"

"Houkou," was her simple answer.

"So, I take it those men wanted to take you back to the Land of Snow?"

Soichi nodded, still looking away. She folded her arms, rubbing one with her hand as if she was cold. "They think I'm too dangerous… That I might hurt someone."

Gaara looked her over, taking her in with his eyes and sizing her up. She seemed uncomfortable there, nervous to be talking to someone, like she expected him to be angry. Still, she didn't strike him as dangerous. They only believed that because she was a container.

Gaara looked at her lonely figure for a moment before he called out, "Temari?"

She stumbled in, having been attempting to listen through the door. "Yes?"

He looked at Soichi again and back at Temari. "Help Soichi get a new set of clothes, clean up, and something to eat. As of now, she is my official guest here."

Soichi looked up at him in disbelief and whispered, "_What_?"

"You can stay here as long as you like." Gaara gave her a comforting smile as Temari escorted her out the door.

After they left, Kankurou walked in with a smirk on his face. "I saw that."

The Kazekage blinked innocently. "Saw what?"

Kankurou's smirk widened into a grin. "You like her, don't you?"

Gaara's face flushed. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

The older brother snickered. "I knew it! It's written all over your face!"

***

Temari led Soichi to a shop in the marketplace. The younger girl looked around curiously. "What are we doing here?"

"To get you some clothes, of course. Pick out anything you like," Temari smiled. The two looked at a lot of clothes, most at the sand shinobi's suggestion, until they finally decided on an outfit.

Once it was paid for, Temari escorted Soichi to a guest room and bathroom to clean up. Temari was about to leave when the snow ninja stopped her.

"Um, Temari?" She held the neatly-folded clothes awkwardly in her arms.

Temari turned in the middle of the doorway to look at her. "Yeah, what is it?"

Soichi blushed a little and looked down at the clothes. "Nothing; never mind."

The blonde shrugged. "Once you're finished, just come down the hall, if you're hungry," she said as she disappeared into the corridor.

She sighed, lifting her arms to her hair to untie the half-pony her hair was in. '_Why are they being so nice to me?_' Soichi pulled out the tie and allowed the rest of her hair to fall. Her bangs touched just past her shoulders, and the rest flowed like a peaceful river to her lower back. If there was one thing she ever took pride in, it was her hair.

Soichi took off her clothes and climbed in the shower. Thinking all the while as she cleansed herself. Working up a lather of soap in her hands, she tried to reason things inside her head. '_Are they being nice just because I'm the Kazekage's guest? No… No matter what his opinion of me may be, people have their own minds._'

Rubbing the soap on her body, she thought more. '_Why is Gaara being so nice to me, anyway? Would he _really_ do all this for me_ just_ because we're both Jinchuurikis?_'

Once Soichi rinsed all the soap off, she reached for a towel and began to dry off. She just couldn't stop thinking about Gaara and how benevolent he was being to her. '_I'll just have to be careful and watch my back,_' she picked up a brush and took it to her hair, '_just like I always have._'

***

After recovering from his brother's accusations, Gaara proceeded in completing paperwork that littered his desk. He scoffed to himself at the thought. '_How could Kankurou think that I would like Soichi that way?'_ He tried to shake the thoughts from his head while he worked.

'_She doesn't seem to have even been around _people_ that much. It was like she was scared just to be alone in a room with someone._' Of course, he couldn't _blame_ her. Being a Jinchuuriki, she must've expected the worst. So, it didn't surprise him in the least.

Gaara scratched his head in frustration. How was he supposed to concentrate on work when he couldn't stop thinking about Soichi? '_Damn Kankurou…_' He stood up with a deep breath and left the room. '_Maybe I just need a bit of a break, that's all._'

He walked around for a while until he found himself in the kitchen. The young Kazekage scanned the countertop until his eyes hit their desired target: a jar of chocolate chip cookies. Gaara began looking around for sight of his siblings; Temari had a fit whenever he had sweets, _especially_ cookies.

When he concluded that the coast was clear, he snatched up the jar and set the lid on the countertop. "Mine!" Gaara announced to himself happily while he claimed a cookie for his own.

Soon enough, he heard someone coming down the hall to the kitchen. Mentally cursing himself, Gaara snatched one last cookie before setting down the jar.

Soichi walked in and looked around, only finding the open cookie jar on the countertop. Something seemed odd and she couldn't help but look up to find none other than the Kazekage on the ceiling with a cookie in his mouth.

She looked up at him and blinked. "Uh… Sir? What are you doing up there?"

"Nothing," came the redhead's cookie-muffled response as he came down. "I thought you might've been Kankurou or Temari." Gaara gave her a small, nervous smile, taking the cookie from his mouth. "They don't think I should be having sweets."

Soichi returned the smile. "Your secret's safe with me, Lord Kazekage." She gave a nod and turned to leave. "Sorry if I disturbed you. I can just come back later."

"No, that's all right. And you don't need to be so formal. 'Gaara' is fine." Gaara reached in the jar and held out one of the cookies to Soichi.

She came back in the kitchen with a sheepish smile as she took the treat. "Thanks."

He only shrugged as the two leaned against the countertop side-by-side as they nibbled on their cookies. "That's a nice outfit. Did Temari pick it out?"

Soichi glanced down at her new clothes. She was wearing black shorts with a red turtleneck tank top. The material was thin enough so she would still be comfortable wearing it in the desert heat. "Yeah, she did." She smiled up at him, proud of her choice of clothes.

Her silky snow-white hair was still damp from the shower so it wasn't pulled back in any way. Soichi could never do anything with her hair while it was wet except perhaps braid it so she chose just to leave it down. It flowed over her shoulders as the two stood in silence, the only sounds coming from their munching.

"Soichi?"

She raised her head to look at him.

"May I ask what brought you here to the Sand Village?" Gaara faced her as he asked, simultaneously finishing off his cookie.

Soichi was quiet for a moment, finishing her own chocolate-chipped snack, before she answered. "I didn't intend on coming here. Not at first, anyway. All I could think of is that I had to run; to get away."

She stared off into space at the floor, deep in thought as if watching something only she could see. "Those men that were after me didn't even realize I was gone until after I had left the Land of Snow."

Soichi diverted her eyes to the ceiling, still staring off into space while Gaara watched and listened carefully. "It took them a while to find me. I believe I was near the Sound Village, when they did. I just started running. It was all I could do."

Gaara waited a moment to see if she would continue before asking, "Why did you leave? What were you running from?"

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "You know how it is. We are only to be used in times of war. In the meantime, everyone else simply treats you however they want, if they even come near you…" The last part was said in a barely audible mumble. For a moment, he even wondered if he heard it correctly.

When Soichi spoke up again, she sounded happier, more cheery. "Like I said, I had no intentions on coming here, especially not running into _you_." She opened her eyes and smiled at him. "But I'm glad I _did_."

**Author's Note:** This story has absolutely nothing to do with Kurisutaru: The Kind-Hearted Shinobi so people don't get confused. This is like... a fanfiction of a fanfiction, of sorts. The characters and family background are the same, but the storyline is different (such as meeting Naruto when Soichi was eleven rather than 14 in a later chapter). Please enjoy, read my other stories, and leave reviews 3 Critiqueing is very welcome!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The two heard someone coming down the hall to the kitchen. Gaara looked over at Soichi. "It's Temari!"

Soichi placed the cookie jar back in its original place and took Gaara's hand with a smile. "Come on!" She tugged him along and the two jumped out the window to hit an overlaying piece of roof from one of the lower floors and took off running.

Gaara didn't think to ask where they were going, only followed along. Soichi stopped suddenly in front of a window, the Kazekage almost smacking into her because of it. Peering inside the window, she whispered, "In here!"

They climbed in through the window and he recognized the room immediately: it was his office. It surprised him when he heard Soichi ask, "Why do you listen to Temari and Kankurou so much, anyway? Are they your advisors or something?"

"My brother and sister, actually."

She blinked, surprised. "So, they're your… _siblings_?"

Gaara nodded. "Is it that hard for you to believe?"

Memories of her own relatives drifted in her mind. "It's just… They seem so _nice_, that's all."

He could hear it in her tone of voice: her family must not be so caring. "It wasn't _always_ that way. Kankurou used to be terrified of me."

Soichi watched Gaara look longingly out the window, seeing that he didn't like the memory. When he turned his head back, he found she had moved closer to him and was also looking out the window.

She felt his eyes on her, so she looked back at him and met his gaze. "It's impossible to undo pain that's already been suffered, but it means the best we can do is prevent any _more_ pain from hurting us."

Smiling at the Kazekage, Soichi asked, "Speaking from experience, Gaara?"

He returned her smile with a small one of his own. "You could say that." His head turned to look back out the window when he felt someone take his hand.

Looking down, he followed the hand connecting to his up until he met the owner's eyes. "Soichi…?"

Soichi only continued her smile with a blush as she looked out the window.

Gaara's face flushed and he, too, looked out the window again.

"Hey, Gaara?" Kankurou came into the office, looking down at a stack of papers in his hands.

Soichi and Gaara released hands and jumped away from each other in surprise, faces flustered as their heads whipped around to face the newcomer. "What is it?"

Kankurou smirked to himself, pretending not to have seen them holding hands moments before. The puppeteer set the papers down on the desk. "I have some more paperwork for you."

Soichi turned completely around to look out the window while Kankurou walked to the door and stopped to look back. "And I'd watch out for Temari right now, if I were you. She found a bunch of cookies missing from the jar in the kitchen." With a knowing smile, he left the room and disappeared around the corner.

Soichi couldn't help but to start giggling to herself. When Gaara joined her at the window, she couldn't stop herself and burst out laughing. The laughter was contagious and Gaara joined in, too. A few seconds later, Kankurou stuck his head back in the room, ceasing their laughter instantly as the two looked at him.

"Yes, Kankurou?" Gaara asked.

He only smirked and shook his head. "Nothing," he laughed and left again.

The two exchanged glances, wondering if he was really gone this time. Soichi ran over to the door to check and, sure that he was gone, started laughing again quietly.

"I guess the great Kazekage has a sense of humor, after all!" Soichi walked over and poked Gaara on the forehead with her index finger cutely.

He rubbed his forehead where she poked him. "Of course, I do! Why wouldn't I?"

"Just checking!" She winked at him before looking at the door. "They're probably wondering where we are. We should go to the kitchen and get something to eat." Soichi grabbed his hand and whispered, "And maybe a few more cookies if Temari doesn't spot us."

Gaara smiled and the two Jinchuuriki left the Kazekage's office, retreating to the kitchen. This time, however, the kitchen was not empty when they arrived. Kankurou was assisting Temari in making some ramen with vegetables.

The sand sister looked up curiously at her incoming brother. "Gaara?"

He stopped in the doorway, Soichi by his side. "Yes?"

"She continued coking while she spoke. "Do you know who ate the chocolate chip cookies?"

"You said I couldn't have any, so why ask _me_?" Gaara could hear his older brother snort with stifled laughter as he put a handful of chopped vegetables in a cooking pot.

"Are you saying it wasn't you?" Temari turned around, holding the hat that belonged to the traditional Kazekage outfit Gaara was wearing. She dangled it in her hand tauntingly with one eyebrow raised.

'_Well, now I know why Kankurou was laughing…_'

Soichi saw Gaara's facial expression and looked at the floor guiltily. "It was me, Temari."

All three siblings looked over at Soichi. Kankurou looked like he wanted a bucket of popcorn for this so Gaara shot a scowl in his direction.

"Gaara showed me the kitchen here after my shower and _I_ ate the cookies, not him. I'm sorry."

Temari kept her eyes on the girl while Gaara watched Soichi in disbelief. _She_ was taking the heat for _him_?

When she noticed her brother's expression, Temari asked him, "Is that true, Gaara?"

His eyes snapped back to his sister. "Can I speak with you outside?"

It was Soichi's turn to look at Gaara in disbelief but he politely ignored her.

Temari washed and dried her hands and stepped into the hall with the redhead. "Okay, I'm here. _Explain_."

"Soichi and I _both_ ate the cookies. She knew that you don't like me eating sweets so she must've decided to tell you it was her." Gaara took a deep breath, waiting for his sentencing.

She only nodded knowingly. "I know. A girl at her weight could never eat that many cookies and _stay_ that weight," Temari said it with a smile. She knew it wasn't Soichi the entire time; she just wanted him to say it, anyway.

"Let's go back in so I can finish cooking dinner for you and your girlfriend." Temari turned away and walked in as her brother's face flustered.

"Sh-She's not my girlfriend!" Ignored, he returned to the kitchen to find Soichi and Kankurou maintaining the food for Temari's return.

The moment he entered the room, Soichi looked up and smiled at him with a small wave. Temari nodded in a signal that she would be taking over the girl's post. Looking out the window at the quickly-setting desert sun, she told them, "Why don't you take Soichi outside and show her around a little, Gaara? I'll let you know when supper's done."

As the two Jinchuuriki left, the remaining siblings smiled at each other. They loved playing matchmaker like this, especially since it was so obvious there was a connection between them.

Soichi looked at their surroundings of the village before looking up at the Kazekage. "Where first?"

He was watching the sky before looking in her direction. "I have an idea, follow me."

She nodded and noticed him look at the top of the towering Kazekage building. '_What could he be…?_' Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt the sand underneath them shifting.

Soichi turned to look at Gaara. "Gaara, what's--?"

He was kneeling down with both hands resting on the ground. The sand around them that they were standing on was becoming harder and more solid.

Gaara smiled to himself, concentrating. "Hang on, Soichi."

"To _what_?" She looked around for something to hang on to on the little island of sand he was making and found nothing. Soichi knelt down next to him and wrapped her arms around one of his for stability.

Knowing she was now stable, Gaara manipulated the sand beneath them to start pushing them up, off the ground around them. The sand started taking shape of a large hand around them as they continued traveling skyward.

Once they reached just above the Kazekage building, the sand stopped moving. Gaara laid back into the sand hand's palm. Soichi was on all fours on his left, looking out over the village.

The sunset was painting the sky with beautiful shades. Vibrant colors sparkled off the girl's eyes as she took it all in. When the sun had almost completely disappeared over the horizon, a voice spoke gently in her ear.

"What do you think?" Gaara was sitting next to her, right knee arched with his arm resting on it. His other leg was flat and his left arm was supporting him to stay sitting while he leaned in to talk.

"I've never watched a sunset like _this_. It's _beautiful_!" Soichi continued looking around the village, clearing enjoying the view.

"You haven't seen _anything_ yet," he smiled.

She looked at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Just wait until the sun goes down; you'll see." Gaara lay back down against the sand where he sat, resting at the base of the fingers so he wasn't lying flat.

Soichi was about to ask what he was talking about, when she glanced back at the horizon. The sun was gone and the night sky was glistening with stars.

Eyes drinking in the vastness of the desert night's sky, she was powerless to resist lying down next to Gaara to observe the scenery above. It was an ocean of a deep navy blue, almost black, spotted with brilliantly-lighted stars. Each one twinkled in Soichi's eyes as she gazed up at them breathlessly.

"Like it?" Gaara asked as the two lay side-by-side, watching the night sky.

Soichi's white hair almost appeared to glow with the help of the rising moon. "Yes; I _love_ it!"

It seemed so open with the lack of trees. Being so high above the buildings made the experience much better, lights from the village unable to spoil the sky's glow.

"Didn't you ever watch a sunset in the Land of Snow?" Gaara turned his head to look at Soichi who continued to watch the sky.

"Not really. Because of Houkou, I wasn't really allowed to go outdoors 'in case something happened' and it's not the same when you watch it through a window; you know?" Soichi turned her head to look at him with her shining silver eyes. "They also seemed to think I might run off since I would sneak outside now and then, anyway," she smiled mischievously.

"I wonder what gave them _that_ idea," Gaara snickered.

She shrugged innocently as if she were serious, smiling. "I have no idea."

The two turned their heads back up to the sky and observed in relaxing silence for several minutes until they heard Temari's voice calling up to them.

"Gaara! Soichi! Food's ready!"

He leaned over the edge and called back, "We'll be down in a minute!"

"Don't take too long or it'll get cold!" With that warning, Temari went back inside.

Gaara sat up and knelt in the center of the palm, readying to lower the sand. "You ready?"

Soichi sat up and crawled closer, making sure to have a hold of his arm before answering, "Ready."

He touched his hands to the sand in front of him and the hand began to slowly lower, cautious not to injure anyone who could be below them. When they finally reached the ground and the hand disappeared, Gaara stood and offered his hand out to her to help her stand.

Soichi took it and pulled herself to her feet. She looked up to the velvety sky; it was now partially obstructed by the village lights.

Gaara tilted his head skyward to see what she was looking at. He felt his cheeks become hot as a pair of arms wrapped around him briefly and let go, looking down to see Soichi.

She felt the flesh burn on her cheeks. "Thanks for showing me, Gaara."

Before he realized what he was doing, Gaara leaned in and gave her a small kiss on the lips. "You're welcome."

Soichi smiled and bit her lip lightly with nervous excitement as she turned and walked inside with Gaara close behind.

Kankurou and Temari moved away from the window so the other two wouldn't know that they had seen.

"I knew it," Kankurou smirked at his smiling sister.

"Oh, yeah."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

It was passed midnight and well before sunrise when Gaara was in his office, doing work to pass the time. He wasn't allowed to sleep because of Shukaku and couldn't make noise so he wouldn't disturb others. Signing a document pertaining to the next Chuunin Exam, thoughts of Soichi floated through his mind.

He had changed out of his Kazekage dressings and into his normal clothes for the night. The clothes were more comfortable for him, anyway. It was so quiet at night; there was nothing to distract him so he could get more work done. On the other hand, it was also more boring and lonely during that time.

Interrupting his thoughts was a knock coming from the open door. Gaara looked up to see Soichi standing there. "Soichi? What are you doing up? Is everything all right?"

"I just couldn't sleep, that's all. I thought I heard you in here, so I was wondering…" She seemed tired as she leaned against the doorway.

"Yes, of course. Come on in." Gaara stood from his chair and walked in front of his desk. As Soichi approached him, he sat on the front of the desk casually and asked, "What's up?"

She took a deep breath. "Those men are still here in the village; I can feel it. What if they find out I'm here and--?"

Gaara shook his head. "Even if they _do_, you're my guest so they can't touch you."

"But in the Land of Snow, they're—"

"This isn't the Land of Snow, _is_ it? Whatever authority they may have held there makes no difference here. Don't worry."

Soichi gave a partially-relaxed smile. That had made her at least feel a _little_ better. "Thanks." She looked over at the papers on his desk. "So, what're _you_ up to?"

Gaara grabbed a few random papers and held them up. "Paperwork. Lots and _lots_ of paperwork."

She stepped in closer to look at the papers he held. "Ah, I see! It sounds like _you're_ having lots and _lots_ of fun," she said, sarcasm ringing in her voice.

Setting the papers down again on the desk, he nodded, joining in the sarcasm. "Oh, yeah. I'm practically bursting at the seams with fun!"

Both Jinchuuriki kept their eyes on the papers he had set down for a while in silence. Soichi took a few steps closer and looked him in the eyes as he turned his head to see what was coming near him. Placing her hands lightly against his chest, she leaned forward and kissed him.

Beneath her hands, she could feel his heart pick up pace. He kept leaning back and she kept leaning forward until she had to climb on to the desk over him just to keep up. Gaara slid back on the desk and helped Soichi up, never once breaking the kiss. She sat on her knees in his lap, one leg on each side of his waist.

The Kazekage wrapped his arms just above her hips to keep her from falling off just as her arms glided around his waist. He noticed his own face becoming slightly wet and pulled away from the kiss to look at Soichi.

She rested her forehead on his as her hair fell in front of her face. Gaara could see that she was in tears. He was about to ask why she was crying when she spoke.

"Thank you… Gaara," Soichi whispered tearfully.

He tucked some of the hair that was in her face behind her ear.

The hot, salty droplets fell down her face, each one seeming to take away a piece of her smiles. "Everyone here is so nice. They treat me like I'm normal; like I'm _human_. Back home, I'm just…" The tears fell faster as she shook her head. "I'm just a Jinchuuriki; a _demon_."

Gaara raised one of his hands to the base of her head and neck and guided her to his shoulder. He pulled her closer and let her tears fall as he stroked her hair and rubbed back gently.

"It just…" Soichi squeezed some of his clothes beneath her fingers and he pulled their bodies closer, "isn't _fair_. Jinchuurikis can feel, too. We're not heartless, emotionless beasts…!"

Gaara only listened and allowed her to cry as he did his best to comfort her. He didn't care to watch the time so he didn't know how long it took for her sobs to fade away. The less she cried, the more relaxed her body became. When her cries were no more than sleepy whimpers and her grip had loosened around him, Gaara carefully slid to the edge of his desk.

Gently maneuvering around her figure, he picked Soichi up in his arms and carried her to a quiet corner of the office where his folded Kazekage clothes lay. He knelt down and laid her there, using the robes as a pillow for her. Gaara walked to the closet and pulled out a small blanket, spreading it over her torso. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. With a last look at her sleeping, tear-stained face, he walked back to his desk and did paperwork, glancing over at Soichi every few seconds.

Several hours later, Temari stepped into the Kazekage's office. It was 4:30 am, meaning the sun would be rising within the next half hour. She looked out at the still-dark sky and noticed Soichi out of the corner of her vision.

"Working hard or hardly working?"

Gaara was buzzing away at paperwork and didn't look up at his sister. "What do _you_ think?" The files seemed almost finished, no more than fifteen left to go over and sign.

"Looks like you got a lot done last night. What's the occasion?" Temari sat in a windowsill behind the Kazekage and watched him work.

Scanning over a document suggesting Casual Dress Friday, Gaara answered with a nod. "I'm planning on taking a little while off today to spend time with Soichi. I don't want to give the Council any reason to tell me otherwise."

She nodded. "Smart thinking. Are you sure you're my brother?" She didn't need to see his face to know he was scowling at her. "I'm just kidding; good work, Gaara."

Temari motioned to Soichi in the corner. "How long as she been there?"

"Since about two, I think." Gaara looked up from his work to look at her again. Her breathing was steady and relaxed; it was a very peaceful sight. "She was worried those men might find her and force her to go back to the Land of Snow."

"Ah, I see." Temari decided not to ask if there was anything else. If there was, it was their business. Besides, she could weasel it out of them later.  
Gaara's head traveled back down to his paperwork and worked quickly. '_Soichi… You'll _never_ have to go back there if _I _have anything to say about it!_'

The blonde gave a bored sigh as she hopped out of the windowsill. "I'm going to get breakfast started." She pointed at a document he picked up. "And it looks like I'll have to leave for the Leaf Village in the next week or so, hm?"

Gaara read what she was pointing at. "Looks like it. I'll wake up Soichi in a few minutes and then we'll come join you for breakfast."

Temari walked to the door. "All right, then," and she was gone.

After a few more papers, he stood and walked over by Soichi, sitting by her head. For a moment, all he did was watch her, thinking about maybe just letting her sleep. Orange glows came from the windows, signaling sunrise. The Kazekage nudged her shoulder gently.

"Soichi?"

Her eyes lazily opened and searched the room for what had woken her. When the icy blue eyes fell on his aqua ones, she smiled. "'Morning, Gaara." Soichi sat up but was still tired so she rested her head against his neighboring shoulder.

"Temari's making breakfast in the kitchen," he stated, watching her contently as she rested against him.

"Okay," she yawned. "What time is it, anyway?"

Gaara looked up at the clock. "About 5:10."

Soichi rubbed her eyes to remove the sleep crusts and goo from them that had gathered while she slept. "You guys get up _early_," she teased.

The two sat in silence for a little while, Gaara slipping his hand over and into one of hers. "I got a lot of work done last night so I should be free today as long as nothing else comes up."

She weaved her fingers through his and placed her other hand on top. "Did you have anything in mind?"

"I might."

She could just feel that he was smiling without looking at him. "Sounds good to me." Taking her head from his shoulder, she added, "Let's go get some breakfast."

Both of them were walking around the Kazekage building at a loss of what to do. Soichi stopped when she smelled chlorine in the air; it appeared to be coming from behind a nearby door.

"What's in there?"

Gaara peered around her to see the door. "In there? A swimming pool."

Her eyes lit up as she looked at him. "Want to go swimming?"

"We'll have to get you a swim-suit," he smiled. Pulling out some money and handing it to her, he requested, "How about you go pick out one you like from one of the shops and I'll get changed and meet you there."

"I won't take long, I promise!"

Soichi ran off and he heard a door shut as he started off to go to his room. As he expected, she wasn't back yet when he returned to the pool. '_This'll be interesting,_' Gaara thought bitterly to himself as he sat at the edge of the pool in his black swim-trunks. He let his legs dangle in the water while he waited.

Less than five minutes later, Soichi opened the door and stepped in. She was wearing a two-piece royal blue bikini and a smile. "What do you think? Does it look okay?"

"Perfect." Gaara waved his legs to and fro in the water.

She went over to the deeper end of the pool and jumped in. When she surfaced, she found he was still at the edge and swam over. "You okay?"

He looked away. "I don't… really know how to swim."

"I'll help you!"

"No, thanks."

"Come on," she took a foot by the ankle in each hand and gently waved them around in the water and cooed, "it's fun."

"Soichi…" he blushed.

"I'll make you," she threatened with a mischievous smile.

Looking back at her, he asked, "What do you mean you'll--?"

Soichi tightened her grip around Gaara's ankles and gave a hard tug so that he slid off the edge and into the water. She moved forward and caught him to be sure his head didn't go under.

The water they were in was just over their waists so he could easily stand. It startled him, but other than that, he was unharmed.

"Soichi!"

She giggled and flicked the surface of the water in his direction so it splashed him. "No so bad, _is_ it?" She swam around him, keeping her head above the water. "If you can take a bath, you can swim."

"So, if I drown, it'll be _your_ fault."

"You're not going to drown." She stopped swimming to stand in front of him, hands on her hips. "Even if you _did_, I would just do CPR."

"Ah-ha! So I _can_ drown!" Gaara looked at her accusingly.

"But you _won't_! I'll even show you." Soichi grabbed Gaara by the wrist and ragged him through the water to the side of the pool, patting the ledge with her other hand. "Hop up here and lay down."

He did as he was told, climbing out of the pool and lying down near the edge. She said teasingly, "Now, if you _were_ to drown," he shot her a look that changed her tone, "first, I would see if you have a pulse and if you're breathing."

Soichi put two fingers near his Adam's apple. "I wouldn't wait long enough so that your heart would stop beating so I won't do chest compressions."

"But what if--?"

"We'll just say I _did_!" shushing him with a wink. "Normally, I'd be kneeling next to you instead of being in the pool like this, but I don't feel like climbing out." Soichi poked him in the ribs with a laugh before becoming serious again. Placing one hand under his neck and the other on his forehead, she tilted Gaara's head back. "I have to tilt your head back to make your airway clearer and give you two breaths."

She lowered her head over Gaara as if to give him the mentioned breaths and stopped when they were almost touching noses.

"Aren't you going to give me mouth to mouth?"

"If you're breathing, I could accidentally hurt you."

"I wasn't talking about CPR." Gaara lifted his head up to close the space between them and kissed her.

Soichi blushed and stepped away from the pool's edge just out of Gaara's reach.

He didn't understand. "Where are you going?"

"If you want me, come in and get me. The Kazekage can't be afraid of a little _water_, _can_ he?" She swam to the halfway point across the pool from Gaara and stood there.

"Do you _enjoy_ torturing people?" He turned on his side to watch her.

"No, just you," she smiled. "You coming?" Soichi splashed some water at him.

"Stop that."

She splashed a little more. "What are you going to do about it?"

"I'll get you!" Gaara threatened, sitting up at the pool's edge.

Making a series of silly faces at him, she taunted, "Go for it! I'd like to see you try!"

He slid into the water and paddled his way over, surprised when he saw Soichi sink under the water and swim away.

"Hey, that's cheating!"

"Is not," she smiled while surfacing for air.

When Gaara caught up to her, he slipped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Soichi stood on her feet and laughed, pretending to try and pull away from him by grabbing at the pool's edge.

"I got you."

She tilted her head back to see him. "I see, and what will you do with your new-found prize?" When he didn't answer, she turned fully around within his arms to face him. "Gaara--?"

When she was half-turned, she found a pair of lips claiming hers. Soichi melted into his arms and smiled as she pulled back. "Now, _that's_ cheating."

"Is not." Gaara's fingertips rippled along her sides teasingly. He smirked into her neck as he left tiny teeth marks wherever he desired, traveling along her shoulder and collarbone.

She tilted her head back to give him access when she flinched. When Soichi flinched a second time and raised her hand to her head, Gaara stopped to see what was wrong.

"Are you all right? Did I--?"

"No, it wasn't you; don't worry."

"Then what is it?" Gaara took one hand from her waist up to her forehead to check for a fever. "You're not sick, are you?"

"I'm not sick. It's nothing," she insisted.

"Tell me, Soichi." His eyes were serious; he was very concerned.

"It's just a headache from not getting much sleep last night, that's all. It's no big deal." Soichi lowered her hand from her head and smiled at him, trying to prove she was all right.

"All the same, you should rest for a little bit." Gaara picked her up by the waist and set her down at the pool's edge, and then climbed out, himself. He walked away and came back moments later, draping a towel over her shoulders and offering his hand.

With his help, Soichi stood and the two walked over to a nearby chair. She sat at the side of one and him on another one next to it. The Jinchuurikis simply sat there, drying themselves off for a little while until Gaara asked, "How's your head feeling?"

"Still hurts, but it's a little better."

The Kazekage reached to the neighboring stack of towels and pulled off a fresh one, handing it to Soichi. "Just rest in here for a few minutes. I'll make sure that no one bothers you." Gaara stood, bits of water still dripping off of him, and turned to leave.

"Okay… and, Gaara?"

He turned around to see her with a questioning, "Hm?"

"Thanks," Soichi blushed.

"You're welcome." Gaara turned away again and smiled to himself.

She laid back and closed her eyes, drifting in to sleep with a smile.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Soichi opened her eyes and looked around. There was no one in sight. She picked up her towel and carried it with her, setting off to search for Gaara. Finding Kankurou in the hallway, she asked, "Have you seen Gaara?"

Kankurou nodded towards the Kazekage's office. "Temari and him are in his office talking to some shinobi."

She gave a small nod of appreciation and dashed to his room, hearing voices from inside. Her eyes widened as she recognized them to be of the men who were after her.

"Lord Kazekage, we need the Houkou Jinchuuriki or our village will be destroyed!" The leader of the three was the only one speaking. The other two simply stood quietly.

"How so?"

The door to his office opened and Temari emerged, bumping into Soichi. "Soichi? What are you--?"

The two quieter men tackled Soichi to the ground in an instant and pulled her in the office; they weren't about to let their target escape.

Gaara, dressed in his Kazekage robes, glared at the men. "Let her go. I will not allow to have my guests treated that way."

Soichi shrugged the men off and went to stand safely behind Gaara, holding her towel sheepishly in front of herself. He turned to her and asked, "Are you all right?"

She wiped her jaw where it had hit the floor in the tackle with the back of her hand. "Yeah, I'm okay."

Turning back to the three men, his expression told them to continue. The leader cleared his throat and resumed.

"Two men came to our village, looking for the Houkou Jinchuuriki. They told us they were from an organization called Akatsuki and, if we didn't cooperate, they would destroy the village until they found her."

"Why didn't you simply ask her to go with them?" Gaara noticed them scowl in her direction.

"Because we knew she would refuse. Their intentions are to remove Houkou from its container for their own use. A procedure like that would be fatal to the Jinchuuriki."

The Kazekage glanced back at Soichi. She seemed scared and hurt; like any moment she would start to cry while her eyes diverted to gaze out the window to avoid looking at them. Her village had betrayed her, bargained her life in exchange for their own without a second thought.

"I'm afraid I can't help you, and I believe it's time for you to leave." Gaara felt like punching the men, himself, but as Kazekage, he cannot.

The man pointed angrily at Soichi, speaking directly to her for the first time since she entered. "So you'll just sit and abandon your village _just_ so you can save your own neck?"

Her sorrowful grey eyes looked up at him. "Why not? All of _you_ are willing to abandon _me_ for your _own_ lives."

The three men charged at her with built-up anger and there was a flash of motion. The scene seemed to freeze. Gaara was standing in front of Soichi with a barrier of sand in front of them. Temari had one of the men, Kankurou restraining another, and his puppet Crow had their leader, the puppet's mouth revealing a poison-tipped needle that was barely a centimeter from the man's neck.

Kankurou snarled, "Get out."

"And don't bother coming back," Temari added.

They released the men who backed away slowly, as if having thoughts of a second charge. As Gaara's sand disappeared into his gourd, he said, "Good-bye, gentlemen."

One of the two quiet men stopped in the doorway and looked at Soichi. "We're not just doing this for ourselves, you know. We have families of our own, and so do you. Kaido—"

"Don't you _dare_ bring him into this," she snapped.

The man fell silent again as Kankurou and Temari escorted the three out. Gaara turned to Soichi once the room had been cleared.

"Are you going to be all right?"

She didn't answer, only looking down at the towel in her arms. When she finally responded, she asked, "Who… Who was the first person that wasn't afraid of you?" Soichi looked up at him. "That didn't hate you?"

The Kazekage thought of his uncle, Yashamaru, and of Naruto, but he didn't answer since it sounded like a rhetorical question. "Who's Kaido?"

Fiddling with the towel, she answered, "My little brother. He was _my_ first." Soichi smiled sadly to herself at the thought of his smiling face. "Kaido's only five, so I guess he doesn't really 'know' to be afraid of me or hate me. His hair is all black with white streaks in random places." She animated the streaks' locations by gently pinching pieces of her hair and running her fingers down them.

"My sister, Yuuta, is the opposite." Her smile faded at the thought while Gaara listened. "Her hair is white like mine, with _black_ streaks, and she's eighteen. Instead, _she_ was probably the first to hate me. Yuuta won't even speak to me or come near me unless she's scolding Kaido for associating with me. Kaido thinks the things I can do, thanks to Houkou, is cool and he loves it when I do little tricks for him, constantly making Yuuta and my parents angrier with _both_ of us."

"I see… What do you want to do? It's your call." Gaara studied her figure as she took a deep breath.

"First, I think that I just need to get changed." Soichi walked past the Kazekage and turned the corner to room.

As time passed, Gaara became increasingly worried about his guest and decided to visit her room. He knocked, and after hearing no answer, went inside. Looking around, she was nowhere in sight. "Soichi?"

A small, white note on her bed's pillow caught his eye and he picked it up.

'_Dear Gaara,_

_By the time you find this note, I will probably be outside the village limits. Please don't follow me._

_Soichi Raito'_

Stuffing the note in his robes, Gaara ran out of the building and into the street. On his way to the gates, he barely made it two blocks when he ran into Soichi at a shop. She hadn't noticed his arrival yet and continued looking at the shop owner's wares contently. He was about to approach her when he noticed the three men from earlier standing nearby so he only stood and watched.

The leader walked up to her and blocked her view of the shop. "Soichi, let's go. We're leaving."

"No, now leave me alone!" She turned around to walk away but the other two were blocking her path so she was surrounded. Soichi glared at them. "The Kazekage, himself, told you to leave me alone. What do you think he'll do if I don't come back?"

"As far as _he_ knows, you ran away." The one who had mentioned Kaido back at the office held up a notepad with similar papers on it to the note that was left in her bedroom. "Now, let's go."

Soichi's eyes widened and she attempted to dart off between two of the men but they were ready and caught her.

Gaara had had enough of this and came forward. "Hey!"

Struggling in their grasp, Soichi looked up at the Kazekage. "Gaara?" She pushed out of their arms and ran over to Gaara. He put an arm around her shoulders defensively.

"Lord Kazekage,_ you_ do what _you_ must to protect the people of _your_ village. Let us do what _we_ must to protect the people of _ours_," the leader pleaded.

"As long as she is here, she is my guest, and therefore, a _part_ of _my_ village."

Angry at the Kazekage's interferences, the three stepped forward. Soichi stepped out from Gaara's side to stand in front of him. "I'm warning you; don't come any closer."

"Or what?" Their leader took another step closer to taunt her.

Her eyes glowed bright yellow with black pupils as she muttered, "Strike."

A thin bolt of lightning traveled from the sky and struck the small piece of land between them with a loud 'crack!' Everyone nearby, except for Soichi, were shocked but unharmed. Wide-eyed, the men backed away and left. Gaara's head craned to look at Soichi, whose eyes were returning to their normal icy blue.

The Kazekage blinked, looking at the pinpoint-accurate scorch mark on the ground in front of them. "What did… you do?"

"I told them not to come any closer." She, too, looked at the scorch marks, and then at the people surrounding them. Their frightened expressions told her everything she needed to know. Soichi just started walking back to the Kazekage building, Gaara close behind.

"Gaara, the Council would like to speak with you," Temari informed the Kazekage.

He sighed and abandoned his quest to Soichi's room and set off down the hall with Temari to the meeting. "What do they want?"

"I don't know, but it sounded urgent. Kankurou is already there."

Walking up to the door, both of the sand siblings went inside. The rest of the Council and Kankurou were already present and seated. "Lord Kazekage, glad you could join us."

Gaara sat in his designated chair and asked, "What's this about?"

The members exchanged glances; none of them wanted to be the one to tell him.

Soichi walked down the hall in search for Gaara and heard voices coming from a meeting room. One of them sounded like Gaara so she stood next to the door and off to the side to listen and wait for his exit.

One of them finally worked up the courage to say it. "It's about your guest Soichi Raito."

The Kazekage raised a hairless eyebrow at them. "What about her?"

Now that someone had gotten the ball rolling, the other Council members started to speak up. "Something must be done. That lightning strike she caused earlier today could've seriously hurt someone!"

"If what those men say is true, then Akatsuki is on the move and Houkou isn't the only Bijuu they'll be after. If they discover she's here, not only will _you_ be in danger, but also the entire village."

Gaara would have told them he would take those chances, gladly, but it wasn't _his_ safety that bothered any of them. Kazekage or not, he was still a Jinchuuriki, and therefore, treated as such. He took a deep breath and looked amongst the Council. "So, what do you suggest?"

"She _has_ to leave the village, and _soon_ before word gets out that she's here if it hasn't already."

Gaara stood from his seat. "I will _not_ ask her to leave. I told her when she arrived that she could stay as long as she wanted, and I don't tend to go back on my word."

"But, Lord Kazekage--!"

"We will discuss this later; it's late. Once everyone gets a little sleep and can think more clearly, we'll discuss it in the morning. Good-night," Gaara announced. When he opened the door, Soichi was sitting next to the doorway, head buried in her knees.

She released her knees and stood. "I shouldn't have listened. I'm sorry," she whispered as she turned and bolted off in the direction of her bedroom.

"Soichi, wait! Hold on!" Gaara chased after her and caught up with her just in front of her door. He prevented Soichi from disappearing inside of it by wrapping his arms around her from behind in a bear hug.

She struggled in his arms, trying to make it to the safety and privacy of her room. "Let me _go_, Gaara!"

He only held her tighter. "No. I don't _care_ what the Council says, I won't make you leave. If anything I'll ask you to _stay_."

She stopped struggling and gave in, her head hanging in guilt as her hair fell from behind her shoulders in front of her face. "But, Gaara, they're _right_. I could've _killed_ someone with that lightning. And it won't take long for Akatsuki to know I'm here."

"I don't _care_. I will _not_ make you leave and just throw you to them like meat to dogs like that!"

There was a long silence while Soichi let his words sink in before she gently pried Gaara's arms from around her waist. "Please, let go."

His arms slowly pulled away and the two just stood there for what felt like eternity. "My office is always open."

She stayed silent and stepped inside her room, leaving him alone in the hall.

The village had finally grown quiet in the darkness of night when Temari walked into the Kazekage's office. He appeared to be on his way out.

"Do you know where Soichi is?"

Temari blinked, confused by the question. "Yes, of course. I just saw her a few minutes ago."

"Where is she?" he egged on.

"She was leaving. Didn't she stop in?" She watched her younger brother as he ran out the door of his office without giving an answer.

He ran as fast as his legs would take him. '_Please, let me reach her before she gets to the gates!_' Reaching the village entrance, Gaara saw Soichi and skidded to a halt, spinning around so that he was in front of her. "Soichi!" He was breathing hard from the running, trying not to let it show.

She looked up at him. "Gaara, what are you doing here?"

He couldn't stop himself and, out of desperation, wrapped his arms around her. "_Please_, don't leave. Stay _here_ with _me_."

Soichi closed her eyes and hugged him back. "You know I can't. It's too dangerous for me to be here."

"If you leave, Akatsuki will find you easily!"

"No, they _won't_. With so much natural surroundings, I'll be able to hide with no problem." She pulled herself out of Gaara's grasp. "If anything, they'll come after me instead of you."

"Even Akatsuki wouldn't dare to come after two Jinchuurikis at once. If you leave, they'll just pick us off." Gaara knew _this_ battle was one he would be unable to win.

Away from the bright of the village lights, the stars reflected brightly in Soichi's eyes. In the dark, her eyes appeared black; her irises bright like the moon. She wasn't going to budge on this; she was leaving whether he wanted her to stay or not. He could also see that she didn't want to leave, either, but Soichi forced herself into the decision.

"Can you at least wait until morning? Just one more night so you have a fresh start?" Gaara watched her as she shook her head.

"If I wait until morning, those men will be on me like piranha. Leaving now, I'll have several hours' head start." Tears twinkled like stars in her eyes. "I'm sorry." Soichi walked past him and broke out into a run.

Gaara turned and watched until she was no longer in sight. Finally, he reluctantly turned around and walked back to the Kazekage building.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Soichi grimaced as pain ripped through her right side. She stopped in the sand and looked around, the blood from the wound above her left eyebrow blurring her vision. She thought she saw one of the Sand Village's guard posts so she removed one blood-stained hand from her side to wipe her eyes, the salty sweat making it sting. Confirming what she saw, she broke out into a run.

Temari was one of the guards at the post and looked out at the oncoming figure. They were running frantically, nearly tripping over their own feet in the sand, their fingers occasionally grazing the ground in an attempt to regain their balance without stopping. Once or twice, they tumbled into the sand and pulled themselves to their feet and ran again.

When the figure came close enough, Temari finally recognized it. She ran out to intercept her arrival. "Soichi, what are you doing here? You've been gone for weeks!"

Speaking in between breaths, Soichi gasped, "Where… Gaara?"

Temari shook her head. "He's gone. The Akatsuki came and kidnapped him."

Beads of sweat dripped down her face and into her cuts. '_I'm too late!_' Pain shot through the wound in her side again, making her drop to her knees, shaking. "I have to stop them…!"

Temari bent down next to her. "We've already sent out a rescue team. For now, let's get you back to the village and get your injuries taken care of."

Soichi shook her head. "There's no time. If we don't find him in time, Gaara will be _dead_!"

She helped the snow shinobi to her feet and made their way back to the guard post. "Well, you're not going _anywhere_ with injuries like _those_."

"Fine," she permitted.

The accompanying ninjas assisted by carefully patching up Soichi's injuries. By the time they were finished, her entire chest and stomach were wrapped with gauze to stop the bleeding of the wound to her side. There was also a patch of taped gauze above her left eyebrow to prevent the gash from bleeding.

Temari sat across from Soichi and looked her in the eyes. "Where have you _been_?"

Soichi looked up to meet her eyes. "Which way did they take Gaara?" There was fire in her eyes, engraving into Temari's mind that she would not back down or let the question be ignored.

Temari didn't answer, but looked over in the direction they had taken him. Soichi followed her gaze and answered, "Right." The sand sister watched as the other stood and ran off in the direction indicated.

Once she'd found the Akatsuki members' tracks in the sand, they were easy enough to follow. '_Please, just let me find him in time._'

Soichi sprinted out to an open plain and stopped, finding several people she didn't recognize, all surrounding Gaara who was lying motionless in the grass. An elderly woman was kneeling beside him with a blonde-haired boy on the opposite side, their hands glowing with chakra. None of them looked at her until she ran forward, screaming, "What are you doing to him?"

A masked, silver-haired man stopped her from running to Gaara as she continued yelling. "Stop it! Leave him alone!"

Kicking and scratching, anything to get out of his grasps. The man still had no trouble hanging on to her. Another man with bushy eyebrows and a green suit walked over and asked, "Who would _this_ be, Kakashi?"

"I don't know, but she seems mad," he spoke as if she wasn't even there. Not like she was really paying attention to their conversation, anyway. When she continued frantically struggling against him, he told her. "Hey, calm down."

Soichi glared back at him, her face seeming far more canine than human. Fangs shone brightly in her mouth as she growled, "Release me!"

The masked man's eyes enlarged at her animal-like appearance. Both of their faces returned quickly turned to normal as they turned their attention back to Gaara.

A bright light came from the elderly woman's hands and Soichi slipped out of the man's arms at the distraction. None of them could stop her as she pushed passed them with tears in her eyes. "Gaara!"

The blonde-haired boy looked at her quizzically as she ran past him. "Who are _you_?"

"I should be asking _you_ that! You're one of Akatsuki's pawns, I suppose?" Soichi growled as she knelt down next to Gaara.

"How dare _you_ accuse _us_ of working with Akatsuki? We busted our _butts_ trying to save Gaara and _you_ show up out of nowhere…" The angry blonde trailed off when he realized she wasn't listening.

The Kazekage's eyes slowly opened and looked up at the teary-eyed smiling face. "Soichi?"

She rested her palm to the side of his face, letting her thumb gently glide across the kanji for 'ai' on his forehead. "Yeah, it's me."

Gaara's stiff body sat up and strung his arms around Soichi's waist and pulled her tight as her arms pulled around his neck. "You came back." He felt something warm and sticky on her shirt and pulled back to see her blood on his hand. The redhead finally noticed the patch by her eye and looked at her with concerned eyes.

Wincing slightly with a pained hiss, Soichi attempted to smile. "Not even Akatsuki could keep me away."

They were now surrounded by several ninja from the Sand Village. The angry blonde boy still wanted answers, "Gaara, who _is_ this girl?"

This was the first that the Kazekage had noticed they were even there. "Naruto?" He looked around and noticed the other ninjas there, as well. "This is Soichi Raito from the Land of Snow." Gaara looked at Soichi and introduced her to each of the Leaf shinobi from where they sat. After the introductions, Soichi turned back and hugged him tighter.

"I'm so glad you're all right," she sniffled. "If something had happened…" he felt her hot tears fall onto his shoulder, "I don't know what I would've done."

Kankurou walked up and gave a small inconspicuous cough. Gaara looked up at him and muttered, "Oh, shut up, Kankurou." The older brother only snickered and walked away.

Temari walked over, looking down at the two. "Are you all right, Gaara?"

He looked up from within Soichi's arms. "I'll be fine." Gaara gently pulled away to examine the snow ninja's injuries more closely. Noticing that, underneath the torn and bloody clothing, there were already bandages there, he looked back at her face.

"Temari helped me," Soichi answered his puzzled expression. Judging by the appearance of the gauze, she had bled since they'd been placed and needed to be replaced.

Gaara placed his hand over her injured side and began to feel it over in hopes for a sense of the severity of the wound. Soichi squirmed and tried to push his hand away. "Please, don't," she whimpered, "It hurts."

The pink-haired girl named Sakura walked over and knelt down. "Can I see?"

Soichi shied away and glanced at Gaara for assistance. She still didn't allow Sakura access to her injuries after being informed the girl was a medical ninja. The Leaf ninja finally gave up when the girl still strayed away and insisted she was all right.

"We'll have it looked at once we get back to the Sand Village," Gaara assured both of the kunoichi.

"Naruto offered his hand down to his friend and Gaara took it. As he stood, he held on to Soichi's hand and pulled her to her feet like they were Monkey in a Barrel toys.

"Let's go home," the Kazekage announced.

"I _hate_ doctors! Don't touch me," Soichi called from above a cabinet in the infirmary treatment room. She curled up defensively, out of their reach.

"It's only a few stitches for your side," the medical shinobi attempted to reason.

"_No needles_!"

Sakura sighed. "We can't just leave it _open_."

"Oh, _yes_, I _can_; watch me!" Soichi protested.

Gaara offered his hand up to her. "Fine, no stitches. Let them at least clean it up properly and put on new bandages."

She watched his hand for a moment, uncertain of what to do. Finally, taking his hand, she slowly climbed down and sat on the examination table. Sakura pat the table, indicating for Soichi to lie down, and she reluctantly complied.

The medical ninjas lifted up the side of her hospital gown and picked up a scissors, cutting away the previous wraps. Once all of the bandages were removed, the medical shinobi pulled over a container of saline and began to flush out the wound.

Soichi closed her eyes and attempted to focus on something other than the procedure. The cleaning stung and a burning pain rippled through her body. She bit the inside of her lower lip to keep herself from making noise, though a small whimper still escaped. Feeling a hand slide into one of hers, she gripped it tightly without question.

Once it was clean and the bleeding subsided, the medical ninjas looked it over closely to see if they would have to force Soichi into allowing them to place stitches for her own safety. The wound was, indeed, deep. It reached from near her shoulder blade down to her hip in a curved slash. However, it did not appear to need stitches as long as she avoided rigorous activity for a while. Wrapping it up quickly and carefully, Sakura informed Soichi that they were finished.

Soichi sat up, lowering the gown, and looked up at Gaara, whose hand was in hers, and smiled. "Thanks, Gaara." Looking down at her torn and bloody shirt laying on the counter, she chuckled nervously, "I guess I can't wear _that_ shirt again."

"I'm sure Temari has probably bought you a new one already." The Kazekage looked over at the door, knowing Kankurou, Kakashi, and the other Leaf ninjas were out there. Surprisingly, a knock came from the door.

The door cracked open and a small boy's head peeked in. When he saw Soichi, his eyes lit up and he ran over. "Soichi!"

"Kaido…?" The snow shinobi was dumbstruck as the little boy's arms flung around her. "What are you doing here?"

The door opened a little more to reveal her parents. Her mother had long, black hair and her father's was short and white. Soichi glared at the two, Kaido's legs latched around her waist and his arms wrapped around her neck.

"We're taking you home," her father said sternly.

"Why should I? You sold me out to Akatsuki!"

Naruto poked his head inside to listen to the conversation, despite his former-sensei's efforts to prevent it.

Her parent's faces remained detached to the situation. It was no concern of _theirs_ whether she died or not.

Soichi stared daggers at them both, holding her little brother tightly while standing next to Gaara. "And what about Yuuta? Is _she_ here, too? Or did the little Akatsuki wannabe go back home?"

Gaara looked at her inquisitively until Yuuta stepped out from behind her parents and leaned on a nearby wall. Her left cheek was swollen as if she had been punched and there was a gash in her arm as she glared at her Jinchuuriki sister. "My only regret is that I let you get away."

Soichi pried Kaido off and charged at her sister. Snatching a kunai from the girl's leg pouch, she began to hurl it at Yuuta's neck when she felt three pairs of arms around her. Yuuta smirked triumphantly at her sister's reaction, but moved out of the way in case they couldn't stop her from attacking.

Looking around her waist, was Kaido, eyes tightly closed and arms just as tight around her. Around her shoulders was Gaara, giving her comforting squeezes from time to time. Finally, around both her raised and fist, were Naruto's, tightly holding her wrists to keep her from continuing with her actions.

"Don't fight," Kaido begged with a squeak. "Please, Soichi?"

"She was _with_ them! _Who_ do you think _did_ this to me?" Soichi struggled roughly against the other two Jinchuuriki, but her attempts were futile. "Don't stop me," she growled, "Let _go_!"

"Kankurou, take Kaido outside," the Kazekage ordered.

The sand brother pried Kaido away from Soichi and dragged him out of the room. "Come on, little buddy."

She continued trying to force her way out of their grasps to get to Yuuta, barely paying attention to either of them until Naruto spoke.

"I know, it's hard," he started out gently. "The pain of betrayal isn't healed over easily, but you can't let it get to you. All this is doing is giving people more of a reason to hate and be afraid of you."

"How would _you_ know what I've been through? How would _you _know _anything_ about it," Soichi snarled tearfully at the blonde shinobi. "What would _you_ know about being completely alone?"

"Because… I've _been_ there. It's horrible; the worst feeling in the world. At times, it's almost unbearable." Naruto looked up to meet her hurt-filled eyes. "Kankurou told me about Houkou."

Soichi slowly lowered her hands and ceased her struggling. He had the same eyes as her; eyes that have experience true pain and loneliness. "You're…"

Naruto nodded. "Kyuubi."

When her hands lowered completely and she released the kunai, allowing it to crash to the floor, Gaara whispered softly in her ear. "Are you going to be all right?"

Closing her eyes calmly, Soichi replied, "Yeah, I'll be fine. Thank you."

The two boys finally released her and stepped aside. She opened her eyes and looked between her parents and Yuuta.

They repeated, "We're taking you home."

"I'm _not_ going back to the Land of Snow. With the Kazekage's permission, I would like to stay _here_ in the Sand Village." She glanced over at Gaara and Naruto, who gave reassuring nods. "And, could Kaido--?"

"Absolutely not! You've influenced him _enough_ with your," her mother eyed Soichi cautiously, "_'behaviors_'. You tried to kill your sister!" Yuuta rubbed the bandaged gash on her arm like she was an angel who had done nothing to deserve such treatment. The golden child who could do no wrong.

Soichi was about to protest when Gaara spoke up. "We _could_ simply let the boy choose for himself. Can we all live with that?"

The parents exchanged nervous glances before her father nodded slowly. "Very well, Lord Kazekage."

Naruto walked into the hall and brought Kaido back inside the room. Sakura knelt down so they were face-to-face and explained, "Do you want to stay here in the Sand Village with Soichi or do you want to go back to the Land of Snow with your parents and Yuuta?"

Kaido looked uncertainly from his parents and Yuuta to Soichi. "When would we be going back home, Soichi?"

Soichi knelt down so they were at eye level. "We wouldn't be, Kaido."

He continued looking at them all, deep in thought, almost afraid to make a decision. His parents gave angry expressions, as if angry if he were to make a choice they would be displeased with. Soichi seemed hopeful, but emotionless otherwise.

"Pick what _you_ think is best, Kaido," she encouraged.

Soichi was near the Sand Village gates, now changed into navy shorts and a lilac purple T-shirt, watching her family leave. "They've chosen their path, and I've chosen mine."

She gave Gaara's hand a small squeeze and turned around. '_I just hope it was the _right_ one._'

"Let's go home," the Kazekage announced.

Soichi shifted thee tired Kaido in her arms and began walking back to the Kazekage building, but she suddenly stopped. "Hold on a second."

Gaara stopped and looked bewildered as the former snow ninja set her sleepy younger brother down on the ground nearby. When she turned back, she moved in close and wrapped her arms loosely around the redhead's neck.

"Soichi?"

It unfolded like a scene from a movie. Gaara's arms glided around her waist as Soichi leaned in and claimed his lips. The tip of her tongue gently ran across his lower lip to taste his chocolaty sweetness. Now having access to her mouth, he tasted her sugared strawberryness with a hidden smile from them both.

She tightened her grip around his neck to pull him closer. He tugged his arms tighter so their bodies were closer, as well. Soichi was the first to finally pull away, leaving the Kazekage dumbstruck, causing her to giggle. She leaned down and picked up the now fast-asleep Kaido securely cradled in her arms.

Gaara stepped in at her side and wove his fingers into hers. "Let's go home and get Kaido in bed."

"Good idea… and, Gaara?"

"Yeah?"

Her face turned pink, "I love you."

His cheeks flushed as he smiled. "I love you, too, Soichi."


End file.
